"Naturally." Lian did not disagree.
Each of those Awakened ones came from different backgrounds.
Normally, in the Ruined Realm and their own world, they have to follow the laws.
The crime of killing other Awakened ones is very serious... but here? There were no laws here, and anything could happen.
"If we had a complete map, it would be much better." He said after a while, his mind returning to Averian’s documents.
"Maybe I should ask the tribe leader."
The two came down from the platform and went to the council house. The elders’ meeting had just ended, and Averian and a few of the elders were leaving.
When he saw Lian and Seris, he stopped.
"We’ll be leaving this place soon." Lian said and gave a brief look at Seris.
"We want to go to the Giants’ Graveyard and then Glassthorn."
The faces of a few elders changed, and one of them whispered under his breath.
"That’s madness."
Another looked at Seris cautiously and said nothing.
Despite the power of those two, the name of the Giants’ Graveyard still had a terrifying meaning for the forest’s inhabitants.
"When are you leaving?" Averian asked.
He was not that surprised. He knew that these two were not going to stay here forever.
"In three days. Before that, we need something."
"What? I’ll help however I can."
"A map." Lian continued.
"Do you have a map of the Giants’ Graveyard or this entire world?"
Averian was silent for a moment, his gaze went to the elders, then he said.
"There is a map... but..."
He didn’t finish his sentence, so Lian asked.
"But what?"
"It’s better if you see it yourselves."
He took them to the old section of the tribe’s archive. The library was built inside a very old root.
Unlike Averian’s private hut, the space was larger but more disorganized. The shelves were carved directly into the root’s wood.
Scrolls were piled on top of each other. Bone inscriptions, skin maps, stone tablets, and containers of dried ink were placed in various spots.
The smell of old wood, dust, and dried plants was in the air.
Averian went to the back of the library, knelt in front of a short and dark chest.
Three bone locks were on it. He opened them one after another, and the chest’s lid rose with a quiet sound.
From inside, he brought out a piece of a map. At first glance, its material was different from all the tribe’s documents.
It was not monster skin, nor woven fabric. Its surface resembled thick and very resistant paper, but thin strands of mana were flowing inside it.
Its edges, despite their age, had not decayed. The lines on the map were precise, thin, and orderly.
The symbols were different from the script used by the Lacerians. A large part of the Forest of Giants could be seen on it.
The territory of the three tribes was marked with distinct symbols. Paths among the roots, old waterways, and dangerous areas were recorded on it.
In the northern section, the Giants’ Graveyard was marked with a symbol resembling a massive skull.
A line extended from the Lacerians’ territory to the edge of the graveyard.
But right where the valley path and the entrance to Glassthorn should have been shown, the map was cut off.
Its edge was not naturally torn. The cuts were precise and had been deliberately divided into separate pieces.
"The map is not complete." Averian spread the map on the table.
Lian touched its surface with his finger. A weak reaction of mana was felt under his skin, and also, some of the words used on this map seemed familiar to him.
Not that he understood their meaning, but he felt he had seen this script somewhere before...
"Where is the rest?" he then asked.
"I saw another piece with the red lizards." Before Averian could answer, Seris said.
The tribe leader nodded.
"That’s right." He placed his finger on one of the cut edges.
"Each piece is with one of the three tribes." He pointed at the map.
"This piece belongs to the Lacerians, the second piece is with the Varkesh." Then his gaze became more serious.
"And the third piece is held by the Mireclaws."
"Why did you divide it?" Lian examined the map more carefully and asked.
With just one look, he could say the details of this piece were truly unique.
"We didn’t divide it." The tribe leader said and then paused briefly.
"Previous generations did." Then he explained the story of how the map was found.
Years ago, or according to some accounts, several generations ago, members of all three tribes, while exploring an area near the Giants’ Graveyard, had come across an unknown ruin.
The building did not belong to any of the tribes. It had metal doors, and its walls were too smooth.
Symbols were carved on it that no elder or priest could read.
Inside the ruin, there were items that once worked with mana or an unknown power, but had been inactive for a long time.
They found the map inside a metal container.
When the three tribes disagreed over its ownership, a short war broke out.
In the end, the elders of the time decided to divide the map into three parts so that no tribe could use it alone.
Averian continued.
"Some think the map belonged to one of your kind."
"Or at least came into the hands of an Otherworldly in some way."
Lian touched the map’s material again. Its structure was too precise for the Lizardmen of this forest.
But it didn’t necessarily seem like it was made by an Earth human either. It could have been made by a native of the Ruined Realm.
Someone who had come to this world in the previous cycle, explored the paths of the Forest of Giants, and had been able to record the route to Glassthorn.
’Now that I look closely, these words are exactly like the writing language on the pillars of the ruin from one of the Divine Of Light temples.’ He thought for a moment.
The words were not exactly the same, but they seemed to be from the same root and form, similar to the writing on the pillars of the ruin where he had saved Kain.
But at that same moment, a troubling contradiction formed in his mind.
According to the information he had, the natives of the Ruined Realm had entered this world twenty-five years ago.
Only one cycle before.
But Averian spoke of the map’s discovery as if the event belonged to generations or even hundreds of years ago.
Was time in this world different from Earth?
Or maybe the tenth Ruined Realm was not the first world whose inhabitants had been transferred here.
Of course, this 25-year cycle was something Ravian had told him based on the legends of this world, and he had connected it to the cycle of a new Ruined Realm appearing every 25 years.
Or maybe the lifespan of these natives here is different? Which would make 25 years seem like a long time to them.
Lian didn’t ask for now.
But he made a mental note to ask Ravian or Averian later about the actual duration of the tribe’s history.
Then he fully opened the map piece on the table. The existing section showed the approximate path from the Lacerians to the edge of the Giants’ Graveyard.
Several dangerous areas were also marked with various symbols.
But the main path through the valley, the entrance to Glassthorn, and probably parts of Emberroot were on the missing pieces.
"We need to get all three pieces."
"I’ll get the second piece from the red lizards." Seris answered without pausing.
Her tone was so casual that it was as if she was going to bring an item from another room.
Not a valuable map from a tribe whose leader she had killed a few hours ago.
"After today’s events, the Varkesh will probably hand it over without resistance." Averian sighed.
Seris said nothing. For her, resistance or lack of resistance would not change the outcome.
The tribe leader then fixed his gaze on the other missing piece.
"But the third piece is with the Mireclaws. Dealing with that tribe will not be easy." His face became a little serious.
"Does it matter? If they don’t give it, we’ll kill them all." Seris said lazily.